


Diggin' Holes

by mightyspaghetti



Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Anger, Dark, Friendship, Gen, Psychological, Teenagers, Thriller, anger issues, friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:35:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25260247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mightyspaghetti/pseuds/mightyspaghetti
Summary: Hel, a confused and angry young boy, is forced to part with his old life and friends, when he and his parents move to a seemingly boring small town. Withdrawn and unhappy at first, he gradually grows to know and like the town's children, feeling especially drawn to one of them, the charming and mysterious Than. Can Hel deal with both his uncontrollable and often violent emotions and his growing friendship with Than?
Kudos: 1





	Diggin' Holes

**Author's Note:**

> TW! The story is dark and contains psychological degradation and non-explicit animal abuse (I tried to keep it to a minimum, please don't hurt animals)
> 
> This is my first story, please bear with me. Thank you for checking it out! Feel free to ask me anything regarding the characters or the story. I wasn't sure if this is the place to upload, but a lot of people suggested it so I decided to give it a shot. ^^

Rain was pouring as Hel's family car was moving carefully down the empty road. Surrounded by luggage, suitcases and boxes, Hel barely had any space to move. Hel's father had noticed his son's behaviour changing since the day they announced they were moving. It was there again, that sadness in Hel's eyes, as he was looking out the car window. His dad tried talking to him, explaining how everything will be fine in the new house, but all he got as a response was an exhausted smile. Hel was tired of everyone telling him how everything was supposed to magically work out, he was supposed to be happy and expect his new life to be perfect. He was already fourteen years old and they still acted as though he was a child, or at least that's what he thought. They should just accept he wasn't happy and needed some time to process things. While his dad was trying to cheer Hel up by cracking another lame joke, the boy could see his mom giving him that really annoying worried look in the rear-view mirror. Something in that look really got on his nerves. He just wanted to be alone with his thoughts for a while. Doing his best to ignore his parents, Hel closed his eyes, leaning on the window, and drifted to sleep.

When the car reached its destination the rain had stopped. As Hel was getting out of the vehicle a couple of cardboard boxes fell out on the grass. The noise their contents made really ticked Hel off and he gritted his teeth. As if he wasn't irritated enough. He clenched his fists in anger, but tried his best to keep his cool. After putting the boxes away Hel finally had the chance to look around. They had moved to a smaller town, their new house was not too large, but big enough to fit his family. The neighbourhood looked calm. A lot of houses and gardens, and an almost empty street where he could ride his bike, the only good thing about their new home he could think of, and it was quickly annulled after he realized he had nobody to ride with. Hel felt like his life was becoming more corrupted every second he stayed there, like giant chains were forming around him. Chains that would keep him in this town, far away from his previous life. Hel felt tears forming in his eyes, but he remembered someone, was it his aunt, telling him boys don't cry. He held back his emotions and went into the house to help his parents unpack.

Later that evening, as Hel was washing the dishes after dinner, he looked out of the window and saw a bunch of kids outside laughing and running. How could they be having fun when he was so miserable? Why did he have to be all alone in this new place now, while they were having fun with their friends? The chains from earlier came back and wrapped themselves around him. Hel gritted his teeth again and thought how funny it would be if he scared the kids somehow, just to make their laughter stop. He could throw a plate or a cup at them. It would be even funnier if it actually hit one of them. Hel's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a bowl hitting the floor and breaking. His mom came running in the kitchen to see what had happened. Hel got mad at himself for dropping it. No, it was the kids' fault. They distracted him. Hel groaned, kicked one of the bowl pieces and stormed out of the house before his mother could say anything.

A week had passed since they moved in. Hel had taken the time to get to know the neighbourhood quite well and make his way around quickly. He took regular walks alone every night. From time to time he would see those kids that made him break a bowl, and would glare at them. Today Hel was out, going to the convenience store at the end of the street. It was a hot day, as it was summer, and he hated that. Actually he hated a lot of things recently, even things he used to love, like socializing. Hel was usually a very outgoing kid, but lately he avoided people. He also hated games now. They were for children, and Hel wasn't a child. He was grocery shopping by himself, just like an adult. He was also the one who suggested going to the store, and his mother praised him. Hel smiled proudly at the thought. When he arrived at the store he swiftly went around and got what he needed. On the way back he saw those kids again and tried passing by them quickly hoping they will ignore him, but one of the kids yelled something after him. No, Hel didn't want to speak with them. He decided to pretend he didn't hear them, but just seconds later the kids had caught up to him and surrounded him. He felt like a helpless deer surrounded by a pack of wolves.  
"We've seen you around for some time now. You moved here recently, right?" One of the kids asked. Before Hel could answer someone else from the group asked him about his name. Maybe they weren't wolves, but a herd of deer? Hel's scared expression disappeared. Most of the kids looked the same age as him and were mostly boys, with the exception of two girls who were giggling. Only one person stood out to Hel, literally, because he was the tallest one in the group. Before Hel introduced himself, he met that boy's eyes and thought maybe it wouldn't hurt to try and make new friends. After all, the ones from his old school had seemingly forgotten about him, as almost none of them ever called him. After introducing himself Hel learned the tall boy's name is Than. What a unique name!  
"I saw a bike in front of your house the other day. Is it yours, Hel? It's really cool!" Said one of the girls and Hel nodded. "You should ride with us some time." She suggested, bringing a smile to Hel's face. Maybe those kids weren't as annoying as he thought. They walked Hel to his house and told him to meet them near the convenience store again after lunch.

Hel quickly ate his food an jumped from his chair. It seemed like it has been forever since he was excited about something, his parents also seemed happy to see him like that. Hel changed his clothes and on his way out stopped in front of the mirror in the hallway. Wow! His, usually well styled, black hair was a mess. He must've forgotten about it the last few days, but he couldn't go out with his possibly new friends like that. They all seemed well groomed. Especially Than, he had beautiful pale blond hair. It almost seemed greyish. After a quick, but needed hair brushing Hel ran out and headed to the meeting place.

The following days Hel started hanging out with those kids, and the chains around him felt just a little bit lighter than before. They would all either ride their bikes around the neighbourhood, explore the surrounding fields and forests or go to each other's houses. Hel enjoyed all these moments, but unfortunately, most of the kids turned out to be as annoying as Hel imagined. Some of them were too adventurous for his liking, unlike his old friends, who knew how to have just the right amount of fun. One of the boys had a really weird sense of humour compared to the people Hel used to hang out with before moving. Although he was nice to them most of the time Hel wasn't afraid to tell them off when they annoyed him, which was happening a bit too frequently. The only person who wasn't getting on his nerves at all was Than. He was a year older than Hel, calm and charming, with a mysterious smile. He had a good sense of humour and seemed to always know what to say to cheer Hel up, or what adventure to take him and the others on. Sometimes while Hel and Than were talking, Hel would forget they were not alone, and when one of the other kids joined the conversation, Hel would glare at them. How insolent! The kids had noticed that Hel would sometimes snap at them for nothing and be more aggressive than needed. For example the time when he yelled at one of the girls for bumping into his bike, or the time he snapped at one of the other kids for "staring" at him. But these little things in his behaviour shouldn't be made into a big deal, right?

One afternoon after a long day of running around with the kids it was time for all of them to go home for dinner. They saw each other to their houses one by one until only Than and Hel were left, walking to Hel's house. The night was quiet and the only thing that could be heard were crickets and people talking in the distance. Hel was trying to think of a conversation topic, but Than came up with something first.

"Have you ever tried smoking?"

The question caught Hel off guard and for a short while he had a really confused expression.

"No, I haven't. Where is that coming from?"

"Do you want to try?"

Than took a box of cigarettes out of his pocket and handed one to Hel, who hesitated for a while, but noticed the way Than was looking at him. Maybe nobody else from their group knew that Than was smoking, but Than shared that with Hel, not with the girls, not with any of the other boys. He thought for a while longer then looked at Than, who was smirking.

"Sure."

Than took him to a more secluded area between two houses, surrounded by bushes and they lit a cigarette each. Hel's first time smoking consisted of a lot of coughing and weird faces. Hel felt really embarrassed that Than was seeing him like that, but Than actually seemed to be enjoying it. Hel really liked Than's company and that was actually the first time they were alone together and no one could disturb them. The thought of that brought a smile on Hel's face. They talked for some time about all kinds of things. Hel thought about telling him how bad he has been feeling since his family moved, but being taught boys should be strong, he decided to keep that to himself. An hour went by fast and when Hel got home his parents looked worried and asked him where he has been. Hel quickly made some excuse and went to take a shower hoping they hadn't noticed the smell of cigarettes yet.

Such evening hangouts began happening every few days. Although Hel didn't smoke again, he took the chances to spend time with Than. Maybe Hel was imagining it, but Than seemed to enjoy his company too. They would talk about their families, typical teenage stuff, ranting about how their parents make them clean their bedrooms and do chores.

"Is this why you joined us later than usual today?" Than asked after Hel told him he had to help his dad clean the family car earlier that day.

"Yeah! He made me scrub every single dot of dirt off. It was so irritating..."

Than chuckled at the answer.

"Why do you even do it if you hate it so much?"

"Well, I have no other choice, do I?"

"Of course, you do."

Hel thought for a second.

"Maybe next time I won't do it..."

"Is there a chore you actually enjoy doing?"

"What? Of course not. Who enjoys chores?" Hel almost laughed at the question, but Than was being serious.

"I do. For example, I enjoy helping my parents in the garden. I usually dig holes for new plants."

"Hmph... I don't know... Though I know I hate doing the dishes. I broke a bowl some time ago while washing it, and my mom won't stop nagging me every time I do them now, telling me to be careful when handling them."

"Everyone breaks something from time to time, what's the big deal?"

"That's what I ask her!" A small note of anger could be heard in Hel's voice as he was getting more invested into the conversation.

Sometimes the topic of their friends from the group would come up. At first Hel said only good things about them, but soon he opened up to Than about the little things in them that he found annoying. It turned out, Than was thinking the same.

"She does talk too much actually."

"Right!? And they all look at me weirdly when I point out how annoying it is."

Hel would sometimes get too invested in those conversations, the emotions he felt at the time coming back to him. Than laughed and shook his head.

"It's not funny! They think it's nothing, but she can be so annoying!"

"I know, you're just funny when you're angry." Hel glared at Than, but then chuckled.

Those little moments between them really strengthened their friendship. Hel was feeling like he finally had a close friend, who listened to him without judging.

One night, after spending that extra time with Than again, Hel walked home to his parents waiting for him. They had smelled the cigarettes on Hel's clothes from the previous nights and wanted and explanation. Hel got pretty annoyed at them. It's his business, isn't it? They got into a fight which started escalating pretty quickly. Hel's parents didn't want their fourteen-year-old son smoking outside after dark with some kid, when he should be home having dinner. Hel was extremely annoyed at their behaviour. He felt like they were being unreasonably nosy. Hel could feel his blood starting to boil. Then his mother said the unthinkable.

"I want you to stop seeing that boy."

Hel stared at her in shock for a second. She wanted Hel, who has been so miserable and lonely at this new place, to stop seeing his closest friend!? The only thing they did was sit and talk, she was going too far! No mother would make her son move to a whole new stupid place, then demand he stopped seeing his new best friend, just when he was starting to feel a bit better about the whole thing, just when the chains seemed to have disappeared! All these thoughts were running through Hel's head at the speed of light. He was gritting his teeth again. Before having the time to think about it, Hel grabbed the closest object to him, which happened to be a vase, and threw it at his mother, fortunately not hitting her. Both his parents stared at him in shock for a couple of seconds, which felt like a painfully long time. Then suddenly his father yelled at him for doing what he did. Hel knew it was wrong to do such things, he wasn't stupid, but they asked for it! After that incident Hel was grounded until he "realized what he did wrong and apologized to his mother".

On the first day of his punishment Hel stayed in his room the whole day. He had nothing to apologize for. It was his mother who crossed the line, not him. He would wonder what the others were doing without him from time to time, but that wasn't enough to make him say sorry. On the second day, Hel heard someone knocking on the door. He couldn't make out who it was, but he heard his mother tell the person that Hel wasn't allowed to go out. The rest of the day he spent wondering if that person who came looking for him was Than. It was the third day that broke Hel. He was getting restless and irritated staying at home all day, so he decided it was time to apologize. Hel still believed he wasn't in the wrong, but told his mother what she wanted to hear. That he was sorry, he knew what he did wrong and he would never do it again. At first his mother didn't seem to believe him and that scared him.

"Do you know what would have happened if the vase actually hit me?"

"Of course, I do. I - " Hel thought for a second. "I can't imagine what I would've done if it had actually hit you." He should be even more persuasive. Maybe if he cried? Hel tried to think of something that made him sad. He remembered how he felt when they moved, how he could neither tell anybody nor cry about it, because he should be a man, and how when he finally had someone he could talk to, he couldn't see him anymore. Tears formed in his eyes and he muttered:

"I'm sorry, mom"

His mother sighed and hugged him. She explained to him one more time how and why he was wrong about what he did, and just as he was starting to frown, she finally told him he could go out now. Hel tried to hide how happy he was, so it didn't seem like that's what he was waiting for, but it definitely was. He quickly changed his clothes and ran out looking for Than and the others.

At first when he joined the kids, Than barely looked at him, while Hel was glancing at him every few seconds. By the end of the day Hel was fuming. Weren't they best friends? Why is Than completely ignoring him now? In the evening, when it was finally just the two of them, Hel stopped in the middle of the road.

"Why have you been ignoring me all day?"

"Your mom said I was a bad influence."

For some reason after saying that, Than smiled. Hel was confused by that reaction.

"So what??"

"I'm trying not to influence you."

The smile seemed more like a smirk now, this time Than also made eye contact with Hel, waiting for a reaction. Hel was very tense. He thought his closest person would now hate him, because of his mother's stupidity.

"Please don't do this to me! Who cares what my mother says? I want to be friends with you."

Than seemed pleased.

"Let's go to our spot then."

Hel let out a sigh of relief.

"So it was you who came looking for me?"

Than just smiled at him and lead him to their place.

Since that fight, Hel couldn't stand his parents. Everything they did would tick him off and they would fight often. Hel never threw anything at his mother again, but broke multiple plates, decorations and bottles during those fights, which he was later told to clean up, of course.

One day he overheard his parents talking about sending him to anger management therapy. What the hell??? How could they talk about something like that without him? It is about him after all, shouldn't he be included in the discussion? On top of that, he didn't need therapy. Hel clenched his fist and groaned. His father heard him and looked at him.

"Are you really thinking of sending me to therapy?"

"Honey, we're worried about you."

His mother said and gave him that well-known annoying worried look. Hel frowned.

"I don't need therapy!"

"You've been acting different since we moved and you've been very aggressive lately. Going to therapy won't hurt."

His father tried to explain, but Hel was having none of it.

"Well, it is your fault I'm this way! You made me move and live here and.."

Hel felt like he was about to start crying before he had finished his sentence, so he ran outside. For some time he walked aimlessly through the neighbourhood until he calmed down a little, then he decided talking to Than might cheer him up. He found his favourite friend in his garden, digging. Hel approached him.

"Hey, can we talk?"

"Sure, come and sit."

Hel sat on the grass next to where Than was digging. It was a sunny and hot day. The birds were chirping and Than's clothes were wet, he was probably sweating, because of the work.

"My parents want to send me to anger management therapy."

Than laughed as he was wiping some sweat off his face, then continued digging.

"It's not funny! I don't need therapy!"

"I agree, you don't."

"What should I do?"

"Don't go."

"Yeah, that's easy to say."

"It's also easy to do." Than leaned on the shovel and smiled.

"We haven't exactly been getting on lately."

Hel looked down after saying that. The birds were still chirping. Than sat next to Hel.

"I hate living there, I can't stand it. They're always so nosy. Telling me who to be friends with and deciding whether I should go to therapy. Ugh!"

Hel tore some grass from the ground angrily and glanced at the birds who were happily singing.

"Why don't you run away?"

"And where would I go? I can't run away, but they need to know their place. I feel like they've never been this annoying before, I hate it."

Hel got up and started pacing around.

"They also always nag me about coming home late, after hanging out with you. I feel like if that continues I will be grounded again before I know it."

While ranting, Hel bent over and picked up a rock.

"The other day-"

The birds were chirping pretty loudly, and Hel stopped talking and looked at them for a second.

"The other day they-"

It felt like those birds were intentionally trying to annoy Hel with those stupid sounds they're making.

"Agh! Won't you shut up!?"

Hel turned sharply to the tree where the birds were and threw the rock at them. The birds flew away and Hel turned to Than again.

"Hel, look!"

Hel raised an eyebrow at Than and looked in the direction he was pointing at. Apparently the rock Hel threw had hit one of the birds. It had fallen on the ground, dazed. At first Hel looked shocked.

"What should we do?"

"We? You were the one who hit it."

"S-Should we just let it be? Or help it? Or is it dying???"

Than laughed and pointed at the hole he had been digging.

"Let's bury it."

"But it's alive!"

"Oh. Is it?"

That was supposed to be a surprised question, but for some reason it came out as a bored statement. Hel stared at Than for a second then looked at the dazed bird. There was some blood on its body. The rock must've wounded it. Was that what would've happened if he had actually hit his mother with that vase? It was just now that Hel realized what he had done, but he noticed a feeling of satisfaction forming in him.

"Fine, let's bury it."

Than smirked. Hel would often be very confused by his reactions. Than would laugh at things that weren't exactly funny, or he would smile when saying things that shouldn't make him happy. Hel couldn't figure out why he was reacting like that, but found it very interesting.  
After burying the bird Hel realized he felt a bit less stressed and angry.

Hel now knew that what he did to the poor bird actually helped him express his emotions. He thought, that by hitting and hurting animals, it would be easier for him to deal with his aggression, and no therapy would be needed. At first he was just throwing rocks at random animals, most of the time not being able to actually hit them, but anger was building up, and his parents weren't becoming any less annoying. He tried his best to hide his anger from them, because he was scared they would send him to therapy. Eventually Hel started going to the fields near the neighbourhood when he was mad. There he would look for birds, mice, snakes, and he would somehow wound them, then let them go. Unfortunately for him, this all came to an end when a snake bit him. At first Hel got even angrier and kicked the snake, which quickly slithered away. Hel began following it, but it suddenly hit him that he was bitten by a snake. His anger was replaced by horror. He instantly ran to Than who calmed him down, by explaining to him snakes around there weren't venomous. Than was curious how Hel managed to get bitten, but Hel avoided the question and made Than go with him to the doctor. Hel was absolutely terrified by what happened so he stopped going to the fields and hurting animals, but this led to a decline in his mental state again. He was even more irritable than before and was having some horrible mood swings. He would suddenly snap at seemingly nothing, and things really escalated one time when he was out with the neighbourhood kids.

It all started when somebody mentioned something about their siblings, and a discussion about families started. Every kid was whining about theirs, only Hel was keeping to himself. He didn't feel comfortable sharing with them, Than was the only one who knew about his problems at home, but one on the boys tried to include Hel in the conversation.

"Come on Hel, why are you not saying anything?"

"I don't feel like talking about this."

"Ah, yes I forgot. You're a mommy's boy, you wouldn't say anything bad about her, would you?"

Lately Hel was trying to hide his anger in front of his parents, because of the therapy talk, and he was being extra quiet and helpful around them, also forcing smiles and hugs. The kids have probably noticed that and thought he was a "mommy's boy". That infuriated him. He couldn't stand his parents and they thought he was extra close with his mother.

"What did you say?"

Hel frowned and clenched his fist. The boy chuckled.

"Come on, I'm just joking."

"Don't ever call me that again!"

Hel approached the boy, who had now stopped laughing and looked a bit scared. The others tried calming Hel down.

"Come on, Hel, don't take it too seriously."

Hel stared at the boy, trying to hold himself back, but that was too much. Of course, Hel never talked to those kids about his problems, so they didn't know how much that single sentence angered him. He began to turn around and go back to where he was sitting, but something snapped and he swung his fist at the boy. Unfortunately for Hel, the boy, who was bigger than him, returned the punch, and they started fighting. It didn't last long as the other kids started yelling and trying to hold them back. The only person who seemed unbothered by the whole situation was Than. Hel was silent for a few minutes after they stopped fighting then quietly left.  
That night Hel came home bruised. His parents seemed very worried and tried talking to him, but he just went to his room.

Since that day, the kids stopped hanging out with him, everyone except Than, who still talked to him frequently, and he was the only thing holding Hel together. Hel was left with almost no friends again and he couldn't have a normal conversation with his parents without getting mad at them for something really trivial. All the anger that had built up inside him was looking for a way to come out.

Hel found himself frequently walking alone through the neighbourhood again, just like when they had recently moved in. He didn't want to stay at home, he wanted to hang out with Than. Than was the only person in Hel's current life, who provoked good feelings in him, not anger... at least most of the time. Hel found himself thinking about Than most of the time. He wished they could always be together, so he didn't have to deal with other people, especially his parents. Sadly, Than didn't seem to be feeling the same way about Hel, because he would spent half of the day with his other friends. That wasn't fair. Wasn't Hel closer to him than they were? Hel wanted Than for himself.

While thinking all these things one day, Hel suddenly found himself near the grocery store. A small dog came running to him. He recognized it, it was one of the other kids'. Hel hated that thing, it was really energetic, always licking and jumping. As expected it did it again, started bouncing around Hel and licking him. Hel grunted and pushed it away, but it continued doing what it did best, being annoying, leaving dirty paw prints all over Hel's legs and shoes. He pushed it again, a bit harder than before. He was starting to feel angry again, and began walking away, but the animal followed him. If it jumped on him one more time... and it did.

"Don't you know when to stop!?"

Hel yelled and got on his knees. The dog came to lick his face but Hel grabbed it by the throat and squeezed.

"Go away!"

Tears formed in Hel's eyes and he was gritting his teeth again. At this moment it felt like the chains were back and strangling him too. He felt like he was going to pass out, but he heard screams and yelling. The kids were running towards him, yelling for him to let the dog go. Hel got scared and dropped it.

"What are you doing?" The kid who owned the dog started crying and hugged his pet. "Stay away from my pup!"

Hel was a bit dazed, but managed to hear somebody talk about reporting him. To who, though, he couldn't make out. But one thing he was sure about, he was definitely going to therapy now. He got up and quickly took off running. At this time of the day, Than was probably already waiting for him near their place, and that's exactly where Hel ran to. By the time he reached his destination he was sobbing. Than saw him and for the first time ever looked surprised.

"Than, you have to help me!"

"What happened?"

"T-They saw me! They saw me strangling a dog!" Hel began crying. "They said they were going to report me! I'm surely going to therapy now! I promise I'm not a bad person! Everybody will hate me now, even my parents! What should I do, Than? What- I-"

Hel was panicking and sobbing. Than just stared at him for a second, then smirked.

"Don't worry, I know what to do. Come with me."

He grabbed Hel's hand and lead him somewhere.

That night Hel didn't come home.

His parents reported him missing the next day.

Just a few days later his body was found in a carefully dug, but badly hidden, grave in the fields. It was concluded that his death was caused by blunt force trauma. That day, Than bought a new shovel for the garden.


End file.
